Cherry probably was referring to a pre-season game in late September when Toronto forward Darryl Boyce made a play for the puck behind the Philadelphia net and was driven into the boards from behind by Flyers enforcer Jody Shelley and broke his nose.

There is an acceptance at the club that standards of discipline slipped at the Cobham training base during recent regimes, with the new manager to outline his own code of conduct – a throwback to José Mourinho's spell in charge, a period in which Villas-Boas was directly involved – when the first-team squad return for pre-season training on 6 July.

While he intends to assess the playing squad from next week, he anticipates having a major say on incoming transfers, a role previously taken on by the departed sporting director, Frank Arnesen – Michael Emenalo is expected to be confirmed in a similar role this week – and has already succeeded in having the long-arranged pre-season friendly with Vitesse Arnhem on 9 July cancelled.

While the summer transfer window lasts until August 31, ideally teams like to sign players in June, shortly after the end of the season, because there is greater choice and because it allows the newcomer the benefit of a full pre-season's preparation with his new teammates.